Tackling the toughest disease challenges for underserved populations
PATH’s Center for Vaccine Innovation and Access focuses on deadly and disabling diseases that pose the greatest threats to long–term health and development.
All too often, vaccines against diseases that affect people in low- and middle-income parts of the world remain out of reach. Sometimes no vaccine exists at all because of lack of investment; other times natural market forces are insufficient to drive the development of newer, more affordable vaccines. In pandemic situations, vaccine supply shortages can mean that lower-income populations are left behind. Even when vaccines exist and are affordable, making them accessible to everyone—including the hardest to reach—can still be difficult because of various challenges, from insufficient delivery supply chains to a lack of strong immunization-related policy decisions.
We seek to fill these gaps by working on the most urgent needs—infectious diseases responsible for the highest number of preventable deaths—of children, women, and communities around the globe. Our efforts span the entire vaccine development and delivery spectrum with a focus on the following diseases:
- Diarrheal diseases such as rotavirus and Shigella
- Malaria
- Polio
- Meningitis: meningococcus
- Respiratory infections such as pneumococcus, respiratory syncytial virus, pertussis, and COVID-19
- Group B Streptococcus
- Measles and rubella
- Typhoid
- Human papillomavirus
- Regional threats such as Japanese encephalitis and Yellow Fever
- Emerging pathogens such as Nipah virus
